


Islands

by Tallihensia



Series: Not A Villain [9]
Category: DCU, Smallville
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-16
Updated: 2012-06-16
Packaged: 2017-11-07 21:04:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/435440
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tallihensia/pseuds/Tallihensia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Clark is back from a trip across the Galaxy and there’s something different about him.  The reason is more earthly, though, and Diana sets herself to figuring it out.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Islands

**Author's Note:**

> **Disclaimer:** Only mine in my dreams. ^^ This story was written for free entertainment purposes only and may not be reproduced for profit or altered without permission.
> 
>  **Warnings:** none
> 
>  **Spoilers:** none
> 
>  **Notes:** 7th in the Conner series. Beta by Ronda. Cross-posted to [my livejournal](http://alatrific.livejournal.com/40240.html).

# Islands

Diana stood on the observation deck in the satellite and looked out at the planet Earth. What could be seen of the world was mostly blue, with white spiraling around the outer edges. Where the sun did not shine, areas on the continents spotted their own light. There was enough of the light to be seen even from this distance, showing the tread of humans. Only the very largest things could be seen individually at this point, the whole of the continents, none of their parts, none of the islands separate from the whole. Part of the Earth, yet lost in the magnificent view. 

The world was so small when seen from here, yet was so large when there, stepping upon the ground. There, one could not always see it as a whole, lost in its individuality. Yet one had to get such a distance away from it to see the whole that the individual was lost. Both, however, were the truth and had to be respected as such, no matter how contradictory they were. 

No matter whether one was near or far, though, the one thing that stood out and combined both views was that the Earth was an incredible marvel of creation, with a variety of infinite combinations. 

Placing her hand on her abdomen, Diana thought about creation and love, and how the two were always there together, from the smallest flower or blade of grass to the most complex human. She also knew she would do all she could to protect Earth and its inhabitants, even against their own.

The door whispered open behind her, and Diana casually let her hand slide to her lasso before she identified the faint sounds of somebody about her size and weight approaching in very similar boots. She felt the sense of camaraderie that only came when another Amazon was near. There was only one other Amazon, here above the Earth. She let her hand return to where it had been.

"Wonder Woman," Cassie said in greeting, just outside of striking distance. A warrior, acknowledging another warrior's reflexes and accounting for potentially wandering minds.

"Wonder Girl," Diana returned the acknowledgement, and didn't move. By not moving, she showed the younger Amazon that she had both heard her enter and was aware of who she was.

Cassie came the final steps closer, then stood next to Diana looking out at Earth. "It is beautiful."

"It is." 

They stood for some time longer, both watching the world they had sworn to protect. Diana asked, "Are you ready?"

Cassie turned to face Diana, her chin going up and her eyes flashing. Yet she swallowed before she answered, her eyes flicking downward then back up again. "I am. Is it time?"

"Soon enough." Diana said serenely. She caressed her abdomen one more time, then raised her hand and turned towards Cassie. "You have my blessing, my sister. Protect our world."

"I will," Cassie promised, bowing her head to accept the blessing. Then she hesitated, raising her eyes to meet Diana's. "Are you _sure_ I'm ready?"

Diana was both amused and exasperated. "Cassie..."

"I wasn't born an Amazon! My powers didn't come through training, they were a boon from my father, Zeus. I have only been to Themyscira nine times. How can I be enough of an Amazon to do what you can do?" The words poured out, one after another, spilling as if a plug had been removed from a dam. 

Fair enough. Cassie was only fifteen years old, and while eager, was still inexperienced. If Diana could arrange everything the way it should be, this would not happen until Cassie was older. However, if Diana could arrange everything, there would be no need for either of them to be doing what they were doing because the world would be peaceful and everybody would love each other. 

"You're not alone, Cassandra, and you are an Amazon. Not one from the island, true, however Amazons have only been on the island since the magic left so science could develop. Now that magic is slowly reemerging, the world will see Amazons again, and not just us. 

"Some people study their professions carefully before getting work in that field. Others learn on the job. Your way is, perhaps, a more difficult one, yet you also have advantages." Diana smiled. "You know what a cheeseburger is, and who the singers are. When I first came here... if it was not for the war, I would have been horribly obvious. As it was, even with all focus on defeating the enemy, I was still noticed for the things I didn't know."

Cassie smiled, but it was a weak grin, her emotions still disquieted. "Knowing a cheeseburger won't help in a battle."

"It might. And if the cheeseburger does not, then your friends will. You are not alone." Diana smiled, thinking of the rowdy bunch of young heroes that made up the current Teen Titans. Their latest addition was perhaps one of the most powerful, yet he too had much learning to go through. Kon-El would help, and so would the others. 

"You've covered my area for the last few months, while I was covering Superman and Flash's. You did fine. You'll keep doing fine now."

"But you were still _here_!"

At a certain point, reassurances were meaningless. Diana held her peace and let Cassie think it through.

Cassie dropped her eyes. "I'm sorry. I just... I'm worried."

It was possible this was more than just nerves. Cassandra had not been trained on Themyscira, and she was of an age where the art of listening was the hardest to perform. Diana herself had been none too good at listening at Cassie's age, more apt to run off in needing to _do_ instead of pausing to think first. Yet that had not stopped her from stepping out into the world of men and becoming a heroine among them. Cassie still had to learn more of the love, the care that came from understanding those one lived among, however she was a direct daughter of Zeus, and the Goddesses had accepted her as an Amazon. Their training of her would be different than their training of Diana.

Diana let her gaze unfocus as she felt along the paths of balance. There. There was, indeed, a wrongness. "There is a time of darkness coming." 

Why did it have to happen now? But then, the events of a few months back with the Yilans could also have been called a time of darkness and she had been here for that. In the world they lived in now, there would always be something. There were times of darkness, and times of light. The world turned on its axis, morning to night and back again. Depending on where one lived, both could even happen at the same time. Light defined darkness, and darkness the light.

Diana shrugged, accepting what she could not change. For this time, she would not be there. Cassie, however, would be. For her Amazonian sister's sake, Diana tried to read what she could. As with much of the dark, though, the details eluded her. 

"It is as yet, nebulous." Nebulous, but not entirely so. There were indications... but no, Diana could not say with certitude. And if she could not, then it did little good to turn Cassie's thoughts in a direction she might misconstrue. Diana held her peace. The younger Amazon was already forming a solid friendship with the newly minted Superboy, and that friendship would serve them well in the upcoming times.

"You will get through it." That was not prophecy of the paths, however, Diana was sure of it anyhow. Cassie was a true warrior, whatever her age, and she would fight and they would win. "Remember, Wonder Girl, you are not alone." Diana hesitated for a moment, then added, "And make sure they know it too. Make sure _he_ knows it."

"They? He?" Cassie narrowed her eyes.

"The ones you will be with."

"That is probably the most unhelpful thing I've ever heard," Cassie huffed.

Diana grinned, remembering her own early experiences with prophecy. "Sorry. But it'll be helpful later."

"It had better be." Cassie subsided with a final grumble. She looked reassured, though, her mind no longer on doubts but on what could be done. A toss of the golden hair, and she was all Amazon again. "I was going to go practice with the Teen Titans, but if you need me now..." Cassie left the sentence dangling, up to Diana to decide.

Diana let her smile show, appreciating the offer and the care behind it. Her world was not as spontaneously demonstrative as the Americans tended to be, but there were occasions when a hug was the only proper response. She pulled the younger woman close to her, then let her go. "There is some time yet. Do not worry so."

Cassie snorted. "You tell me there's danger coming, you're not going to be here for it, and then you tell me not to worry." She raised her hands to touch Diana's shoulders, not quite holding, yet the intention was there.

"Not for awhile, yet. And you are not alone." Diana raised her arms and the two warriors traded forearm grips, touching their wrist shackles and feeling the power of the Goddesses running through them.

With a reluctant return smile, Cassie accepted it and left.

Diana watched the planet for awhile longer, but the mood had been broken. She accepted that for this moment, the time had turned, and she also left the observation deck. There were reports to go over. Along with great power came great responsibilities... and paperwork.

... ... ... 

Some hours later, Diana was returning the last set of approved purchases on the JL account, and shaking her head over some of the denied claims. "Atom, will you please tell Crimson Fox, for the sixth time, that we are not paying for perfume supplies for their company. I don't care if it was destroyed in a legitimate fight. That's what they have insurance for, which they have already put claims in for. And if they didn't lure the villains into the shop in the first place, they wouldn't have the damage!"

At the communications board, Atom chuckled. "I'll tell them again, but they keep telling me they hadn't been told, that I talked to the other one before."

Diana rolled her eyes. "Twins."

Atom agreed with a laugh. The Crimson Fox had done other things like that based on the fact that most people couldn't tell them apart. It served them well for a secret identity, but they kept doing it when in the League too.

The accountants handled most of the details and then sent her the final forms, but every now and again, they also had post-it notes with suggestions that something might be better received from one of the heroes. If the Atom had already talked to them before, Diana was probably going to have to intervene directly. She sighed, but it was with a chuckle inside. Money was not something they'd had to worry about on Themyscira. It was ironic that the Justice League had evolved to the point of needing accountants. There were a great many brave and honorable people who wanted to help who did not have super powers. They contributed in their own ways, starting with the original young Snapper Carr. Accountants and historians could be heroes too.

Diana sat down at a station near the Atom and took care of that detail, and then some others as well.

While she was in the middle of one complex call, Plastic Man came in with Superman. A shift change for Atom and Plastic Man, and Superman was probably doing some paperwork similar to Diana's. The other superheroes greeted each other, and nodded politely to Diana without interrupting her conversation. Then the Atom left, Plastic Man settled into the on-duty chair and Superman slouched in another one, bringing up some online forms with a frown. Diana grinned and returned her focus to the matters at hand.

By the time she had finished, Superman was engaged in a call of his own and Plastic Man was doing duty checks. Diana marked a few things on her sheet to record the gist of what she had done, and then she settled back and watched Superman. 

A few more heroes wandered in, asking Plastic Man for updates on things in their part of the world. The younger ones regarded Diana and Superman in awe. Diana wondered when she had turned old. She almost moved her hand over, but kept herself from the gesture and instead placed it on her lasso. At which, the younger ones promptly scattered. Not the intended effect, but Diana wouldn't complain. 

One of the others who was more experienced finished talking with Plastic Man and with her eyes gathered Diana and Superman to her side. They consulted with the other hero, listening to her. It wasn't a complex problem, but something that didn't come up often, and they were able to help, offering advice and relating stories of their own. Diana kept a half an eye on Superman the entire conversation, measuring his replies and not finding them different from what he would have normally said, and yet, the difference was there. 

After the heroine left, filled with new resolve to help others, Superman raised his eyebrow at Diana. She silently shook her head and made a subtle 'not now' gesture. He nodded and then gathered in the younger crowd to talk to them, encouraging questions.

On any other day, Diana would have been right in there with him, but for now... Diana stepped back to observe some more.

There was something different about Clark today. As Superman, he was playing fairly close to how he was normally, but there was something a touch off about the underlying personality. Diana was fairly sure that it really was him, that it wasn't an impostor or shape shifter. The thing about Clark and the main trait that he brought to Superman was his inherent goodness, and that was definitely still there.

Most people walked a broad path, larger than a line, between right and wrong. Lie a little, cheat a little, steal a little, but shying away from the broader actions that were universally accounted evil. Most people never had a chance to go to great good or great evil, staying in the center of the path. 

The Justice League, for the most part, was made up of people who recognized both sides and deliberately chose the good, putting themselves against those who had deliberately chosen the evil.

Superman, however, was one of those rare individuals who simply could not see the other side of the path. Theoretically, perhaps, he knew he could do wrong, and he could see others on the wrong side. Yet his choices were made almost as if there were no choices, that the good was the only possible choice to make. 

Clark was not a perfect or a pure being. He had a temper that he tried and sometimes failed to keep leashed in, he tended to use more force than necessary, and he was quick to judge. The judgment often came, however, from Clark's sheer inability to realize what temptation was like for normal people and the way he couldn't understand that most people didn't have his strong internal compass. 

It meant that Clark could never be a good detective, for the best detectives could understand and figure out, in part, why criminals did what they did; and that was something completely beyond Clark. Even when he was on red kryptonite or other drugs, his excesses tended more towards that – excess, and not anything particularly horrible. Breaking of human laws, letting go of secrets, mouthing off and letting his temper show. Nothing like they would have to worry about if, say, Batman was affected similarly.

That genuine goodness made Superman a person that they could all trust and that they relied upon in times of stress and need. The Justice League was a place of righteousness because they could look to their leader and see he would never betray them. He had no concept of such a thing as a deliberate action. He would always work for the good; not just the greater good, either, but the individual good as well. Superman saw people, every one of them, and wanted what was best for them.

Good did not mean ignorant or naïve. Superman had his past and his sorrows, his mistakes and his regrets. His guilt for his survival that had meant the death of so many on Earth when he arrived was something he carried deep within and would never fully be gone. Diana knew that Clark had other things similarly that he had done wrong and carried the shame of within himself. It made him... human, and approachable despite his extremes.

Currently, though... Diana absently stroked her bracelets, symbol of slavery and a reminder of the shackles of the world. It was Superman, yet he was different. One of the shackles that he had placed upon himself years before she met him was gone. Or was changed. She could not quite tell. There was an exuberance about him, and yet also a sorrow. He was here, talking to people, yet a part of him was somewhere else.

This was not always unusual for the League. They fought their own battles, and did not always share. However, Diana felt this was not the same. For one thing, the Goddesses were interested in Superman. Diana could feel their attention, though they had not yet nudged her to action. 

Athena. Aphrodite. Even Artemis was peripherally aware, and Artemis generally did not notice men except to punish them. This was... Diana was not sure what it was. For all of Superman's great abilities, and the way he had helped defeat so many great evils, the Goddesses rarely looked upon him. He was not their concern. However, he was now, and Diana did not know why.

The younger crowd were dispersing now, on to the things that had brought them here. Superman turned towards Diana, raising an eyebrow. He had not been unaware of her gaze upon him.

She nodded, standing up. "Plastic Man, Superman and I will be in the Oak Room. Do not disturb us unless it is urgent." It was one of the sturdier conference rooms. Larger than they needed for the two of them, but Diana wanted room to maneuver; she was not sure why.

Superman was surprised, yet simply accepted it, waving a farewell to Plastic Man and accompanying her down the hall.

"It's been awhile, Wonder Woman. How have you been?"

Small talk, yet real interest and concern there. Superman had only been back to Earth for a few days, back from the mission to shut down the Yilan gate and then the long trip through normal space home. She had seen him when he first arrived in the solar system, when she and a few of the others had flown out to meet the exhausted quartet, and they had exchanged briefings on the mission and how things on Earth had been. The League had had a celebration and Diana had watched as Clark was reunited with his son. They had not, though, had a chance to talk.

She automatically started to raise her hand to her middle, but let it drop before she completed the motion. "I've been doing well. Your son is a bit of a scamp and yet also a delight at the same time."

Superman broke into a wide grin, full of pride and joy. "Isn't he? Kon is just amazing. I'm so lucky to have him in my life. Thank you for taking care of him while I was gone."

"He didn't need much taking care of," Diana replied with amusement. Fatherhood suited Superman well. "I watched over Metropolis, but he had---" With a quick pause, Diana checked the halls, extending her senses out to make sure they weren't being listened to. "Your mother to stay with, and he was all business when he came to train or patrol. A very serious young man. Yet still a scamp."

Clark had lost some of his grin, and the Goddesses' attention sharpened. Diana suddenly recognized where she had felt this weight of attention before, and it was not Superman they were attentive to, not directly. 

While Diana had been watching over Metropolis and Conner, she had also been watching the other person involved in Conner's life. There were a few evenings where she and Lex Luthor had stood atop the roof of his penthouse and discussed the issues behind government funded animal shelters and volunteer rescue groups. The hassles and benefits of developing land while still leaving wildlife corridors. And the inevitable historical arguments on the Greeks and the Romans that came up whenever she was around him. Conner's name had never directly been mentioned between them, and yet he was there in their discussions, invisibly guiding the parry and blocks they were politely exchanging.

The Goddesses had been very interested then, as well.

Involuntarily, Diana made a surprised inquisitive noise, wanting to know more.

Superman stopped and looked at her, but Diana shook her head and waved him on towards the conference room. She wasn't about to broach the subject in the hallway, even a hallway in the Justice League.

They didn't try any more small talk until they were in the Oak Room. Diana let Clark go through the dance of opening the door for her, though it would have been just as easy for her to open it for him. It was one of those things that for most men was a false courtesy, a way of keeping the women lesser while pretending to be nice, though they mostly hid their reasons from themselves. From Clark, however, it was simply ingrained politeness taught by his foster parents and applied to everyone equally. It was easier to accept it from him then to try and convince him it wasn't necessary. 

Inside, she turned on the room's shielding and made sure the recording devices were off. Superman watched her, not worried, but simply waiting for whatever it was she needed to discuss. Diana didn't think he had a clue this was about him. Or rather... "How is Lex?"

Clark startled, his body automatically moving into a defensive posture almost quicker than Diana could follow. She was sure that if Lex had physically been in the room with them, that Superman would now be between her and him, ready to protect. She nodded in satisfaction at the reaction and only gave a slight smile to Superman's glare.

It took Superman a moment to come out of the defense posture, and then his first reaction was not to confront her over the gambit, but to look worriedly at the hidden cameras in the corners of the room.

"They're not on," Diana said, her senses alert. Clark had seen her check their status, and he was still worried.

"I know," Clark said, his eyes still flickering around them. "Would you mind if we went down to Earth to talk? Or perhaps, the moon?"

Diana raised her eyebrows. Then she lowered them again and thought about what Bruce had told her about the unknown person whom Conner had said had his Justice League-made identity information. The only other person who knew so far was Hawkman, and they were all being very cautious, placing different trails of information out to see where the information might or might not lead. Superman was worried about spies inside the League. Specifically, he was worried about surveillance, which had never previously bothered him, considering his best friend ran it. Something to consider.

For the moment, though, Diana took a breath and stilled herself, listening within and letting the Goddesses speak if they would. She opened her eyes after a moment. It seemed they would be willing to take a more active step in the matter. 

She held her arms up, shackles pressed together, and she spoke a word of power for Athena's wisdom and guidance. The power moved through her arms and spread up towards her diadem and down towards the symbolic chains around her ankles, thin enough to fit comfortably under soaks and boots, yet made of the same metal as her shackles and just as strong. 

The power grounded within her and Diana spoke another word. This one of Artemis, for the hunt, camouflage and stillness, none to be aware. Another word of Athena's, to quest through the electronics and know them and all their tricks. Aphrodite asked for a word of love and protection, a fierce mother protecting her own, a lover protecting their beloved. 

Diana moved her hands out and the energy spread through the room, passing over and recognizing Superman as part of the spell and acknowledging him in a golden light. 

There was another word from Artemis waiting to be spoken and Diana frowned. It was a word for women betrayed and confined, captive and abused. She did not know why this word was needed at this point, but she spoke it anyhow, obedient to the Goddesses.

The protection complete, Diana regarded it for a moment, then nodded. "This room is now secure against any surveillance either scientific, magical, or divine. The moments since we entered are likewise also now protected and any words spoken then."

Superman's own eyebrow was up and directed towards her. "This is one of your powers?"

"Not normally," Diana said serenely, taking a chair and sitting down. There were certain powers she had by trial of an Amazon Warrior. There were others she gained while advancing through the mysteries. Some, though, were simply granted as she needed and the Goddesses willed. Superman, however, was still a man, for all his goodness, and he needed to know none of that.

With a lopsided grin that recognized and acknowledged that was the only answer he was going to get, Superman sat down in a chair on the corner from her. It was the most comfortable position for two companions. They were not side by side, facing an enemy, so they could see each other without interference, and there was not a table between them as an across position would have taken. The portion of the table on each of their side gave them something to lean against, and use if they needed it, yet was an aid instead of a barrier. 

"Lex is... good," Clark spoke softly, his eyes shining in a memory, not seeing her but something else, someone else.

Diana nodded. She had thought so. However, she wasn't sure what had happened. She thought back and couldn't recognize even _when_ it had. Something from today, yes, but there was more, something more gradual. The most obvious changes had been when Conner had been there and Lex had been acting out. Clark had reacted very mildly compared to what he would have done before. She had originally attributed it to Conner's influence and Clark's desire to be a good role model, yet there were other things. 

It was about Conner, and yet, for there to have been this much of an adjustment, there had to have been something before as well. 

"What changed?" Diana asked. Then she realized that wouldn't be enough and added, "You used to hate Luthor. Not, perhaps, on an Oliver-level, but at the least on a Chloe-level. He was your enemy."

Clark winced. He scrubbed his hands through his hair and destroyed the Superman style, rubbing it into something more like his natural form. His eyes also shifted from their rich blue color to the forest green she wouldn't admit to admiring. Then they shaded back to blue, an icier one. They focused on her with a cautious searching look.

"You don't include yourself in that level of hatred. Yet he is a villain."

Diana threw her head back and laughed. She took her time letting it die and muted it to a warm smile. "Clark, I _like_ Lex. He is creative, intelligent, challenging, and has a wonderful sense of irony in what he does."

Clark raised his eyebrows in disbelief. "You like him while he's committing crimes?"

"Um," Dianna tapped her fingers on the tabletop, thinking of how to put it. "His crimes are generally crimes against laws, not crimes against people. He flaunts his ability to get away with things that normal mortals are forced to adhere to, both in legal and scientific realms. He will skirt the edge of villainy sometimes, when he kidnaps people to make his point, and when he uses his weapons on you, and yet, if he crosses over, it's by accident, not by deliberation." 

Lex's path of grayness was a very broad trail, and while it was true that his edges were what most people would consider over the sides, for him they were not. Intent was not everything, yet it was something.

"He puts people at risk," Clark said tightly, his demeanor shifting back into Superman mode by default, his instinct and solid good state overriding whatever new connection he'd just made with Luthor. Then he blinked. "You don't think attacking me is a problem?"

"You're mostly invulnerable," Diana pointed out dryly. "It hurts girls when their pigtails are pulled and their clothes are splashed with mud, and yet I'm told it's a traditional way for little boys to interact with them." She shrugged. "He's mad at you, too. Your fights are between you. His putting people at risk is more of an issue, and yet, he doesn't do it deliberately, most of the time. It's more..." She wrinkled her nose, thinking. "Law of averages. He works on the edge, and his people work there with him. He pushes the envelope, and sometimes it goes over. He is at risk as often as are his people." 

Diana thought of some of what she'd rescued him from over the years, "Luthor also has more bad luck than most normal people. His plans are generally solid, but they break more than they should."

"He shouldn't take it that close." Superman sounded weary and heartbroken. He had done a lot more rescuing of Luthor and his people than Diana or any other League member had put together, and while Lex survived, not all of his people always did.

"He shouldn't," Diana agreed. "It is part, perhaps, of his desperation, but he drives too hard for no apparent reason. That, though, is not villainy."

"Not a villain," Clark muttered under his breath, and he opened and closed his hand, staring at it. Slowly, his eyes shifted to green again. 

Diana felt privileged to be one of the few people that Clark let see his shifts between Superman and Clark. He used to do it almost never around other people. In the months since Conner had come to live with him he did it more often. 

Diana smiled a little sadly. She knew from her own experience that teaching the younger generation the importance of secret identities was hard. To be fair, there were more of them, and their peers were not the people they lived in the world with, but each other. Most of the original heroes only had the normal people they lived with to call friends, and it had taken them a long time to find others like themselves. The younger crowd lived both their lives with each other and often there were no barriers between them. It was nice for them, yet could be dangerous. It was also dangerous for the older crowd, tempted by example to relax and let down their guard.

"As for his crimes against the law," Diana got back to the original question. "Clark, in all honesty, American laws can be a bit much. Regulations tying people in all around for safety yet letting the richest people do what they want. Rules about _hot coffee_ for pity's sake..." She shook her head. "Lex thumbs his nose at all of the laws altogether and points out some of the absurdities of the way rich people are exempt. I'm sure his peers are furious at him for how much he reveals. Lex has a bit of the thief within him, it is true, but..." Diana twitched her lips. "I have a fondness for scoundrels."

Clark's eyebrows rose and then drew tightly down, wrinkling his forehead cutely.

"I grew up in a community that mostly barters among each other for what we need. Our community shares, and we have no poverty, though there will always be some with more than others. We do have rules and we have security and we put some of our own in jails to learn lessons, or exiled based on what they have done. But overall, most of what we have in place makes sense. The United States of America is a wonderful country, but it is _large_ and in a way, the laws are like software programs written upon themselves, code added to change things instead of rewriting at the base, making it unwieldy and hard to understand, though it apparently it works." Diana shrugged. "I am not going to worry too much about crimes against laws, unless they also happen to combine with crimes against people."

Clark opened his mouth, then closed it again, shaking his head. He finally let that one pass without questioning it and redirected with a wry comment, "And scoundrels?"

"I am a daughter of Athena," Diana said with a grin. "Ask me another time, with Lex around, and I might tell you." Lex would be amused, though she didn't suppose he would actually believe her. Lex Luthor was too guarded and would always be looking for ulterior motives behind any offer of friendship, or even just a simple liking. 

Diana lost her grin, thinking of that. There was great pain behind such tight walls, and yet, Luthor did not totally block himself out. He could be quite fierce in another's defense, and he drew in the similarly wounded to himself. It was one of the things that Aphrodite liked about him, and made Artemis accept him. 

She folded her hands together and studied her fingernails, length at a utilitarian point yet not too long to interfere with battle. "He was friends with you, once."

Clark made a small sound rather like a rabbit's death cry; a sound of sorrow that had never been made before. He shuddered, and Diana could see shame and regret in all lines of his body. He wasn't even bothering to try and hide it.

Green eyes looked to her. "Can I trust you?" Clark whispered. "Can I trust you with Lex?"

There was the difference, or one of them. Clark sorrowed for the past, as he had before, yet now he was with Lex in a way he had never been before. Before, it had been a past regret but with a firmness of conviction and a moving on. Now... now there was not the conviction. Something stronger and more protective had taken its place. 

Diana didn't think she had ever thought in her lifetime that she would have heard Superman asking to trust another with Luthor. "I swear by the Goddesses, by the spark that is my life, that I will not betray Lex Luthor." 

The shield surrounding them pulsed with a golden radiance as the Goddesses acknowledged her vow.

Clark winced, his features drawn with pain. "Betrayal. It wasn't Lex who betrayed me," Clark said heavily, "It was I who betrayed him."

Well. That was interesting. Diana didn't say anything, but waited for what Clark would freely tell.

"When we were friends, I made a mistake," Clark admitted. "Lots of mistakes. We... shouldn't ever have been enemies."

"And yet, you were," Diana persisted. She was not sure why she needed to know, but she knew it was important.

"Lex... did some things that I thought were wrong, and I left him. Instead of helping him, and trying to get him to go beyond them, I left him alone to deal with it. The path that Lex took then, was my fault. I always regretted his path, yet now I know it was my fault for leaving him alone."

There was that great divide that Clark did not see beyond. Diana didn't say anything, but inside, she sighed. She knew that what had happened had been long ago, and that was the past. Clark was correct that it was wrong of him, however, he would beat himself up enough about it, she had no need to do so as well. 

His revelations that he had done Lex wrong, however, were too recent for what Diana was looking for. They explained the current change. Well, that plus something else that Diana rather suspected had also happened. For Clark to sorrow this much about the past, he had to have gotten close enough to Lex to talk about it. Most likely, very close. She quirked a little grin, recognizing that some of what she had seen earlier about the changes within Clark had a much more earthly reason than a doppelganger. 

Not, however, something she needed to bring out. It was still puzzling her, how Clark could have gone from so much hatred to now so close. People often said there was a fine line between love and hate, and yet there was also the difference between acceptance and rejection, and that was a much stronger barrier.

"For you to think about this now, you had to get closer to him first." Diana cut out a few conversational paths and got to the point. "I see the role that Conner played, and I delight that he can reach out to Lex as he does. That scholarship was brilliant, and it is a joy that he and Lex get along so well."

Clark sat up, looking wary.

Diana rolled her eyes. "It is no secret, and I know you haven't fully settled back on Earth yet, but there's a scholarship meeting in two days. We were debating if it would be I or Lois who went with him."

Clark blinked several times rapidly, both reabsorbing the passage of time from when he'd been off-world and the sudden return to normality, and also the thought of somebody in his place for a meeting. "Lois knows me in real life..."

"She is a danger in a Luthor laboratory, even one with children all around."

With a cough, Clark turned away to hide what was probably a sudden grin. It was true enough, after all.

More seriously, Diana continued, "It's going to be the first combined meeting of scholarships. Tim is going to be there, as well as Bruce, and we don't dare let Lois sniff out that connection."

Clark turned back, no smile upon his face now. "Lois is a good person."

Diana wasn't saying she wasn't. "She has a reporter's instincts, and while she already knows there's something strange about you and Bruce, Bruce has so far managed to keep Tim out of it. With Conner there, though, Tim is going to be less careful himself."

With a sigh of defeat, Clark scrubbed his hand through his hair. "I don't know what I can do about him," Clark admitted. "He just doesn't seem to get that crossing identities can be dangerous. He even has Dick teaching him, with all the direct experience that Dick can show him, and he _still_ just goes on as he is."

"It's a problem with all of them," Diana commiserated.

"Conner's worse. And you just said it yourself – the others follow his lead."

Just as the older heroes did Kon's father. Diana remembered what it had been like back when she'd first met the charismatic Superman, battling side by side with her against foes, and startled by her but accepting her gladly as a peer. 

Superboy was new and had only been out in the world for less than a year, yet his experience had been such that his lines of good and evil were even more sharply divided than his father's, though on a different line. None could say that Kon had not already faced that which would have destroyed many more experienced heroes. Yet his love of life, his delight in everything, his joy in people and the world... all of the younger heroes were drawn to him. All of the older ones as well. It was the lure of innocence, yet without the need to protect him that made him so attractive.

Diana shrugged. "There are worse role models to follow. We just have to figure out how to get that one lesson to take hold. And hopefully not by an object lesson."

Clark grimaced. "I've tried in so many ways, I just don't---"

Diana held up her hand and stopped Clark from going further down that path. "We can talk about that another time. Right now, I want to know about Lex. You used to call him your worst enemy. When did that change?"

"I never called him that!" Superman's eyes flashed blue.

Not that Diana would call Superman a liar, but... she searched her memory. "If you never actually said it," though she believed he had, "you never said otherwise when both Green Arrow and Watchtower have said the same." Very loudly, and in great passion. 

Clark moved restlessly, shifting in his chair and switching which leg he had crossed. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, his eyes slowly drifting towards a greener color and shame expressed in their depths.

"I shouldn't have let them do that."

Diana silently agreed. It was in bad taste, to be that vocal, and people were known by the quality of their friends. Superman no longer walked the same path, but he gave his friends latitude he did not give to others. Green Arrow and Lex Luthor were not that far apart in what they did, sometimes. 

"Lex..." Clark shook his head. "You're right. I said it myself. And... I did hate him. It wasn't so much for him, though, but hatred for the loss of what might have been. Lex had it in him to be a good man once, a great man, and all I saw was the path he took to the wrong, the evils that he'd done, the laws he broke and the pain he brought." His voice dropped to a whisper. "I didn't know I was that path."

It must be a small version of hell, for a person with that rigid of a definition of good and bad to realize how far they themselves had gone over their own lines.

"Tell me," Diana commanded.

Clark opened his mouth to obey, then Superman closed it. He narrowed his blue eyes. "Why do you need to know?"

Fair enough. Diana knew through the Goddesses that this was important, yet her gods were not his. It was good that he was thinking of this instead of just reacting. She thought about it herself and gave him a different honest answer. "You are noticeably different. Your relationship with Luthor," and she was very sure there was one now, "has made an impact and I will not be the only one to see. While I appreciate Lex, there are others that do not. When they find out, the first thing most will think of is mind-control, influenced, something that he has done to you to bend you to his side."

"He did nothing," Clark said tightly.

"Doesn't matter. It matters what they think. Luthor is known for being your nemesis, now he is your lover?"

Diana was treated to the rather spectacular sight of Superman blushing red. Politely, she ignored it and went on. "It might be a fine line between love and hate, yet it is not so fine between good and evil. And then there is Kon."

"Leave Kon out of it," Clark almost growled, the redness receding as he focused instead on defense. He had always been more ready to defend others than himself.

She shook her head. "His first appearance, he attacked you and hurt you severely. He said, and we believe, that he was mind controlled through that, but it leaves the connection. Control, an enemy, and one that you have taken to your bosom. Who could be that devious but Luthor? And while we did not find evidence of who was behind it, Luthor's genes were part of the experiment. As tightly as we have kept that under wraps, there are still a few who know, and that did not persuade them that he was not the one behind it. Luthor has been acting irrationally for months now, and that, combined with your new attitude... what would you think, if it was the Joker and Batman?"

Clark had been getting paler as she had gone on, and at the final image, he choked slightly. "No! Lex isn't like him at all!"

"I don't think so," Diana put an emphasis on the pronoun, "yet I know Lex Luthor. Others do not, they know only the legend, and you. They will see it the same."

"They don't have to know."

Even as Diana frowned at him, Clark looked like he wanted to snatch back the words and unsay them. Even so, Diana had to respond. "You would leave him still a villain, in all their eyes."

"No," Clark said hollowly. "No. He's spent too many years unjustly so already. His father made sure of that, and I unknowingly helped. I will not perpetuate it now."

Every one of the Goddesses came to point and center as Clark spoke. Diana blinked, slightly overwhelmed by the presences. 

Clark started, looking around them. "What was that?"

Diana ignored him and reached for guidance. There was nothing more, and instead Diana turned to the clues that had been shown. "Lionel Luthor died many years ago." She had never met him, but had done her research on the current Luthor and knew about him. The reports on him had been mixed, just like the reports on his son were. Loved by some, hated by others, ruthless in business. Charismatic and deadly to his enemies.

"Lionel..." Clark glanced at the shield around them, then up to the surveillance cameras beyond. "He did."

"The protections are secure," Diana double-checked even as she spoke, making sure of the truth she knew. "None can overhear us. None can record us."

Clark didn't say anything more immediately, studying her instead. Evaluating her for her trustfulness, her ability to hold secrets, and probably trying to figure out what she would do.

Diana held her peace and let him think it through. 

"Lex hasn't changed," Clark finally said. "I have. I grew up, I met real evil, and I knew that Lex was not. He wasn't my friend, and he wasn't the good that he could have been, but he wasn't as bad as he could have been either. He held my secrets close and didn't use them against others, despite our enmity. And when Conner came..." Clark's voice lowered. "He loved Conner more than he hated me. I saw again what there had been once, and this time I saw it still there. Not for me. Not again for me, but it was still there, that which I thought had been destroyed or had only imagined years ago."

There had been a tremble in the last sentence and Diana hadn't been sure Clark would get through it. He did, with only a slight hitch at the end showing the strength of his emotions.

"Conner has said all along that Lex wasn't evil, that he knew what evil was." Clark shut his eyes and a world of despair seemed to crush him down despite his alien strength. "Conner was right. Lionel Luthor is still alive, and he is the one behind the deaths of Conner's brothers, and more."

"Tell me," Diana said again, softer than before, knowing there was worse to come.

...

It was indeed worse, and it would indeed be a time of darkness to come. As Clark came to the end of what he knew, Diana thought about her precious Earth and how delicate it could be. She thought about how separate the islands seemed at a distance, and how they were one upon the globe. Lives brought into the world, lives taken away. Creation and destruction and people thinking they were more than gods, not even believing in gods but going beyond their boundaries all the same.

There was a sadness in contemplating such a one. A longing for something that did not exist. A wish that they were better. An evil that brought so much destruction upon so many others, that did not have to be. 

Diana could see how Clark could have been so confused about Lex for so long. Lex took the name of Luthor upon himself and he took all the sins with it. In his mind, he was the great evil, for he was the son of his father, a father that was not worthy of the love Lex apparently still held for him. 

It was a tangle many years in the making and coming rapidly apart. Diana suspected that Kon had not been in the original plans, and he most certainly had not been expected to be adopted and loved. It was an element that was throwing everything to a different path. Kon was unexpected, a piece that had escaped the game. 

"Watchtower must be removed immediately." Diana was definite on this. "She is a danger to us all."

Clark glanced up to the surveillance camera. "Lex thinks she is only a danger to him."

"Lex Luthor has his own blind spots."

Clark huffed a small laugh. "He does." The laughter didn't last long and he sobered quickly. "I don't know how to do it."

Diana had some thoughts on that, but she would have to check on some things first. "We need to have a meeting."

"Meeting... with whom?"

Only a reporter would actually say 'whom', though more would spell it. Diana looked steadily at Clark. "You did not expect to do this on your own."

"I wouldn't be talking with you if I was that stupid," Clark said with some annoyance in his voice.

"No," Diana agreed, though she doubted Clark had planned it. He took the opportunity when presented, which is more than most did. "Lex must be there. We need to know more, and he must be involved with all decisions about his father. Kon cannot be left out, he is central. For us..." Diana would need to start the arrangements, though she was sure she could not be there to the end. "Hawkman. He already knows there is something not right."

Clark grimaced. "He hates Lex. How about Batman?"

"You can't have all of your supporters. Batman would be too obvious, and he's already crossed too many lines. Hawkman has a reason to meet with you from Shayera's travels with you, and he is a policeman. You need somebody who can think along the criminal element and is used to tracking those who hide. You are not."

Clark didn't deny that was not one of his strengths. "How about Green Lantern?"

"Um," Diana wanted to say yes, but... "He comes with the Corps. While I trust him, and the Corps are a good organization like our own, this is very much an Earth problem. He will come into it later, I am sure. For this first meeting, though, it needs to be less obvious." She thought about it a moment. "Oracle. If Watchtower is to leave, we will need Oracle, and sooner than later."

"Lex will not want a remote meeting."

With reason, considering Watchtower. "I will check, but I do not think it will be a problem for Oracle."

Clark's eyebrows went up and disappeared under his bangs. He hadn't yet put his hair back to a Superman style. Diana would have to remind him before they left.

"Oracle has not always been behind a computer." Diana thought about saying more, but decided to let Oracle do her own talking if she came. "That will be enough of us. Luthor will have Mercy and Hope, and we do not want them..." They would already be watchful and paranoid, rightfully so. "Overwhelmed." Though even that word was not correct. There wasn't much that would overwhelm those two. It wasn't worth correcting, though. From the grin on Clark's face, he got her meaning well enough. 

Three for the League, three for Lex, and Clark and Kon in the middle. It would be a good balance to start.

"Alright. When? It has to be soon."

Diana also turned her gaze to the cameras beyond her shield. "Tomorrow." Setting it up would take some necessary time, yet it could not be put off. 

They both rose from the table at the same time. Warriors who knew the next move was upon them. Diana had not received an actual answer to her question, at least not one that the others could accept. She thought, though, that when the battle came with Lionel Luthor, and Lex Luthor would be there in their midst fighting alongside against him... that would probably be enough of an answer in itself. A hard path to redemption, yet one that could not be avoided. For all that they would plan, this would not be an enemy easily defeated. 

Diana wished she could see it through. She would at least complete her part. In the end, that was all they could do – take care of their own islands, help with others, and hope that they all came together in the end to save the world.

  


* * *

  


END


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